Community Meeting 2-26-09

Concluding that he had said enough on the topic of the GC’s financial situation at other gatherings, the president used the February 26 community meeting to encourage attendees to think about the future direction of the GC.

After reviewing the GC’s progress over the past ten years in replenishing faculty ranks, expanding student aid, and moving to a new building, he encouraged community members not to rest on their laurels. “It’s insufficient to say, ‘Look, we’ve done all of this. Now we’re in good shape, and we’re fighting a battle to ensure that we don’t lose what we gained,’” said Kelly. “That needs to be done, and we are doing it … but we also need to ask ‘Whither goest we?’”

New York, he continued, offers scholars a unique vantage point on a variety of pressing issues, including for example, immigration and globalization. He and Provost Chase Robinson hope that better advantage might be taken of that extraordinary opportunity.

But Kelly’s primary aim was not to articulate a list of predetermined priorities but to provoke discussion about what the community envisions for the Graduate Center. “I want to charge everyone to become involved in that process,” he said.